Acoustical tile



Feb. 27, 1945. A. F. TRIPPENSEE AGOUSTIGAL TILE Filed April 13, 1944 Patented Feb. 27, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

The current invention pertains to several novel features of structural and functional advantage and betterment in sound-absorbing constructions or acoustical tiles, such as are employed on cellings or Walls of rooms and auditoriums, whereby to avoid the presence of objectionable sounds, noises and reverberations.

One object of the invention is to provide an improved and efficient facing and support for a body of sound-absorbing material, such for instance, as flreproofed cotton-batting, rock-wool, or other comparable or equivalent material. such facing, which may be of shallow pan form, being of light-weight, comparatively inexpensive, thin, yet adequately strong, non-sagging, fireproof or fire resistant, readily cleaned -by mere washing, smooth surfaced, inherently colored and unchangeable as to color, requiring no paint or sanding, possessing relatively-high light-reflective properties, moisture and waterproof, composed of one material only as distinguished from one needing embedded reinforcement, economical and not involving excessive installation or maintenance costs, such supporting facings having means mounting them in place in a manner permitting any one or more thereof to be demounted or removed and replaced without disturbing companion and adjacent facings, and having means to interlock neighboring facings together for maintenance of registration in a true and level plane and for mutual support.

To the accomplishment of these and other desirable aims and purposes of the invention, the specified facing and supporting members are desirably composed of cast or moulded resinousbase material, either natural or synthetic, and either thermoplastic or thermo-setting.

To enable those skilled in the art to understand the invention and the various beneficial results accruing from its employment, 3, present preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated in detail in the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this specification, and throughout the view of which like parts of the structure have been designated by the same reference numerals, and such presentation of the novel structure has been described below in this specification, it being borne in mind that the invention, as defined by the appended claims, is susceptible of incorporation in difierent physical form and is not necessarily limited and restricted to the details of construction set forth in this specification and in the drawing referred to, wherefore reasonable changes and modifications may be availed of, or resorted to, without de- Darture from the substance and essence of the invention as presented in such claims and without the loss or sacrifice of any of its material benefits and advantages.

In this drawing,

Figure 1 is an upward perspective view of a fragment of a ceiling equipped with new tiles;

Figure 2 is an enlarged, broken-away, perspective view looking down at one of the tiles;

Figure 3 is a still further enlarged view of a corner portion of one of the resinous-base facingmem'bers;

Figure 4 is a perspective view on a very small scale of one of the sound-absorbing pads supported by one of the facing-members;

Figure 5 is a vertical section on a. large scale through a part of the ceiling and its underlying sound-absorption stratum on line 55 of Figure 1; and

Figures 6 and '7 present partial horizontal and vertical sections of one 01' the tiles, Figure '7 showing one of the tile-supporting hooks just before it snaps by and into place above one of the ceiling hooks.

In the figures of this-sheet of drawings, the main, fiat, thin, horizontal combined facing and support I I of resinous-base or plastic material may ordinarily, but not necessarily, be about onefoot square, from three to five one-thousandths inch thick, and perforated or apertured with holes I2 in quantity, arrangement and size determined by the conditions which the tile is required to meet as to its sound-absorption properties.

The upper surface of such body II is provided with integral ribs I3, I4 intersecting at right-angles and of suitable height, in the present case about 1; inch, the ribs performing the double important functions of stiffening and strengthening the body I I against sagging and also of supporting the fireproofed, cotton-batting sound absorbing or dissipating element I5 which rests thereon a suitable distance above the top face of body II, this pad I5 being about the same size as the facing, that is l-foot square, and about 1 inches thick, the indicated shallow space between the apertured main body II and the bottom surface of the pad being provided to permit free travel of the sound waves for their dispersion over the entire under surface of the pad to allow their efllcient absorption or elimination thereby.

Such facing or plate has a rectangular, stepped marginal head or rim I5 extended entirely around its periphery and the outer face of such rim has a continuous or uninterrupted shallow groove or kerf ii, the material I! below the groove ll extending outwardly slightly beyond that IS Just above the groove, thus affording registered spaces 2i (Fig. between the rim of each member II and the rims of its contiguous members ll,

As is shown, perhaps most clearly in Figures 3 and 5, the lower edge of each rim l5 around the four sides of the member ll is bevelled at 22 to more clearly define and distinguish the individual combined units of the ceiling covering.

The ceiling proper 23, on which the soundabsorbing structure is mounted and from which it depends, is provided with parallel, metal channels 24 whose opposite longitudinal depending walls 25, 25 (Fig. 5) have upwardly-diverging, marginal flanges 25, 26, these channel-bars being secured to the surface of the ceiling 23 by nails, screws or other appropriate means 21.

Each corner of member II has a thickened portion 28, of less height than the rim II with an aperture 29 extending downwardly therethrough and counter-sunk at its lower end, each such hole accommodating a small screw-threaded bolt 3| whose head is above the lower face of member II and whose body extends up through a hole in web 3! of a two-armed spring-clamp ll, 84, the nut 35 of the bolt Just above such web normally demountably holding the clamp firmly in place, the two arms of the clamp tending to contract toward one another.

Each such clamp bears against, and is held from turning by, the two shallow shoulders II and 42 above the part 28 ateach corner of the element II.

The shallow space below the head of each bolt 3| may be filled with any material consistent with proper appearance with the colorof the tiles.

As is clearly illustrated, the top of one such arms has a downwardly inclined end 3' and the corresponding terminal portion of the companion arm flares slightly upwardLv at 81.

These four clamps are so located that, when the facing support II with its pad I! on top of its ribs it, It is positioned with two of the clamps in register with the flange 25 of one of the channel-bars 24 and with the other two clamps in register with the nearest flange 25 of the next bar 24 and then pushed up, the four hooks 36 snap past the flanges 2B and become engaged therewith (Fig. 5) thus supporting the tile horizontally on the two channel bars and allowing the the to he slid along the flanges 26 into rim to rim contact with the next the, but before they thus engage one another, a sheetrnetal rod 38, of inverted T-shape in crosssection, is interposed between the rims and when these come into contact the opposed, horizontal flanges of the rod are accommodated in the matching grooves H of the two tiles sealing the Joint between them and assuring continued registration of the edges of the two tiles.

The third or intermediate upright flange of the rod or bar 38 is received in the space 2| and acts to stiffen the bar and to assist in the support, maintenance of alignment and registration of the tiles.

Also, like T-bars are employed in the three remaining edges of the tile under consideration for the same purposes, whereby each such tile, except those next to thewalis of the room, are thus fitted out and joined on all four sides to surrounding tiles.

To demount or remove any tile, it is merely .necessary to unscrew its four bolts from their non-rotatable nuts and the tile can be extracted without disturbing any other tiles. The four released clamps can be freed and removed or merely raising them as shown in Figure 7 and spreading them whereupon they can be demounted downwardly.

An understanding of this invention will indicate the attainment of the various objects and aims of the invention as hereinabove set forth which advantages need not here be repeated.

If preferred the nuts 85 may be omitted, in which case the screws 3| would have screwthreaded engagement in the apertures through the Webs 32 of the clamps, and, if desired, the arms ill of the clamps may be omitted using the single hooks 33-.

I claim:

1. In an apertured facing adapted to support a sound-absorbing member in spaced relation above it, and having means to secure the facing to a ceiling, the novel improvements that said facing is of a resinous-base material having integral therewith upstanding stiffening ribs on its upper surface to support said member in the specified spaced relation, and also having integral therewith a strengthening marginal rim extending completely around the periphery of the facing, and having secured thereto spring hooks ad- Jacent opposite edges of the facing adapted when the facing and its supported member are pushed upwardly to automatically spring over and en gage hook members secured to the ceiling.

2. The novel improvements set forth in claim 1. including the additional improvement of means securing said hooks to said facing, said securin means being releasable from said hooks from beneath said facing, allowing said facing and sound-absorbing member to be demounted. whereupon said hooks may be removed from their supporting hooks.

3. The novel improvements set forth in claim 1, including the additional novel improvement of screw-threaded means securing said hooks to said facing and accessible from beneath said facin to demount the latter and its sound-absorbin member, said hobks being prevented from turning by engagement with said rim.

ARTHUR F. TRIPPENSEE. 

